Method of manufacturing articles from celluloid and the like



April 18, 1933. s. A. NElDlCH ET AL 1,904,289

I METHOD OF MANUFACTURING ARTICLES FROM CELLULOID AND THE LIKE FiledMarch 13 1929 WM/W028.-

40 times as much as the ordinary materialof Patented Apr. 18, 1933UNITED STATES.

SAMUEL A. NEIDIGH, F EDGEWATER PARK, AND,WILLIA M MENDEL, 013 BEVERLY,

PATENT FFICEV NEW JERSEY METHOD OF MANUFACTURING ARTICLES FROM CELLULOIDAND THE LIKE -Applioation filed March 13, 1929. Serial No. 346,786.

Our invention relates to methods for facilitating the dyeing ofpro-ducts of cellulose,-

of manufacture of such products for commerce, they are primarily moldedin slabs X 21 X 51"; commercial sheets of-such materials being shavedfrom such slabs, of any desired thickness, and trimmed to X If suchcommercial slabs or sheets are to present a mosaic appearance, they .areformed of an aggregate of initially separate pieces of different colorsor textures, of cel- M! luloid or the like, which are joined bycompressing the aggregate while the material is softened with anysuitable solvent. For instance, acetone is a suitable solvent forcelluloid and cellulose nitrate, and ethyl ace- U. tate, or a mixture ofalcohol and ether, are

suitable solvents for cellulose acetate.

Perhaps the principal use of such mosaic materials is in the manufactureof tubular bodies and caps for fountain'pens, pencils and the like. Itis the usual practice to form such tubes, of mosaic appearance, bycutting the conglomerate slabs above contemplated into bars, turning theouter surface thereof to cylindrical form, and boring such bars incoaxial relation with their outer surfaces. It is obvious that such acomplicated method of manufacture is extremely costly. For instance,such mosaic material, in its primary form, costs approximately fiveuniform color or texture, and fountain pens including holders and capsof the turned and bored type cost from $7.50 to $10.00

each, retail. I

It is characteristic of our invention that celluloid or the like, ofuniform color or texture, or both, made by the least costly method andmeans known to the prior art, are caused to present the desired mosaicappearance by dyeing the material either in' the form of the commercialplane sheets above contemplated or after the material is reduced tocylindrical, tubular, or other form by any suitable method or means.

As hereinafter described, an essential feature of our invention is atreatment of the area to be dyed, before or in the actual dyeingoperation, and by subjecting it to the action of a cellulose nitratesolvent having a high boiling point and low volatility; for instance,derivatives of ethylene glycol, such as ethylene glycol monoethyl etheracetate, or ethylene glycol mono ethyl ether, or diethylene glycol monobutyl ether, etc.

Our invention includes the various novel features of structure,arrangement, and

method of procedure hereinafter more defin itely specified.

In said drawing; Fig. I is an edge view of a piece of plane cheapcelluloid or the like,.having regions in spaced relation upon one facethereof, masked by dye resisting material.

Fig. II is a View indicating the piece of material shown in Fig. I, butafter it has been subjected to the dyeing operation and the dyeresisting material removed therefrom. i V Fig. III is a cross sectionalview of a cylindrical tube of celluloid or the like.

Fig. IV is a View similar to Fig. III, but

showing regions ofthe outer surface of the tube masked with dyeresisting material.

Fig. is a view similar to Figs. III and IV, but showing the condition ofthe tube after the unmasked areas thereof have been subjected to theaction of the solvent, pre} paratory to the dyeing operation.

Fig. VI is a View similar to Fig. V but showing the unmasked regions ofthe tube dyed.

material removed.

Referring to Fig. I; the sheet 1, of celluloid or the like, is masked bymaterial 2 which is dye resistant, for instance, paraffin, which may beapplied to the material 1 in any convenient manner and by any convenientmeans; for instance, by spraying it VII is a View similar to Fig. VI butshowing the finished tube with the masking thru a perforated patternsheet laid upon the surface of the material to be dyed. The areas 3 ofsaid sheet 1 which are left exposed, to be dyed, between the maskedportions of the sheet aforesaid, are then subjected to the action of asolvent a of the character above contemplated. Such solvent may beapplied in any convenient way, by any convenient means; for instance, itmay be sprayed upon the exposed surfaces thru an air brush nozzle 5.However, such preliminary treatment of the material 1 may be effected bybrushing the solvent thereon or by dipping the sheet face downward in abath of the solvent. As indicated at 7 in Fig. I, the effect of theabsorption of such a solvent by celluloid or the like, is a slightexpansion of the treated areas, producing a cameo effect.

Such preliminary treatment of the ma terial to be dyed has the effect ofrendering it permeable by dyes which are ordinarily classed asnon-penetrating, with respect to celluloid and the like, for instance,dyes which are mixed with water or water and alcohol. Such treatment notonly permits the use of less costly dyes than are ordinarily required,but accelerates the operation of dyeing so that it is effected in muchless time than heretofore.

The dye stuff may be applied to the exposed areas 3 of said sheet 1 inany convenient way by any suitable means. For instance, the dye may besprayed with an air brush such as indicated at 5 in Fig. I. After thedyeing operation is completed, the masking material 2 may be removed,conveniently by warming it; leaving the sheet 1 with its regions 3 dyed,as indicated in Fig. II and with the desired mosaic effect.

Referring to Fig. III; the cylindrical tube 9 of celluloid or the likemay be formed by turning and boring a piece of the solid slab abovecontemplated or by a tubular molding operation or by rolling a thinsheet moistened with solvent. Such tube 9 may be masked with dyeresisting material 10, as indicated in Fig. IV, leaving regions 11thereof eX- posed for the dyeing operation. The tube thus masked maythen be treated with the solvent material in any manner abovecontemplated and with the effect that the re gions 11 thereof absorbsuch solvent material and project as indicated in Fig. V.

The tube 9thus rendered abnormally susceptible for the dyeing operationmay be dyed with any suitable dye stuff, conveniently dyes of the cheapnormally non-penetrating class above contemplated, applied in anysuitable way and with the effect of dyeing the regions 11, as indicatedin Fig. VI.

Thereupon, the masking material 10 may be removed from the tube 9.leaving the latter in the dyed and embossed form shown in Fig. VII.

Celluloid and the like have such affinity for cellulose nitrate solventsthat if such a tube as 9 be instantaneously dipped in and removed from abath of the pure (low volatile high boiling) solvent and the tube beallowed to rest for a few minutes while the solvent thus picked up isabsorbed; the dye may be caused to penetrate thru the entire thicknessof the tube. However, for the manufacture of pen tubes abovecontemplated, it is unnecessary to dye the material to such depth and avery considerable saving in solvent and in dye stuff, and in the timerequired for treatment, may be effected by diluting the solvent. Forinstance, ethylene glycol mono ethyl ether acetate and similarderivatives of ethylene glycol may be diluted with water. However, weprefer to employ a more volatile diluent, such as carbon tetrachloride,or light hydrocarbons. Altho gasoline and naphtha may be used in lieufofcarbon tetrachloride as diluents of cellulose nitrate solvents; carbontetrachloride is preferable because it is not inflammable like thehydrocarbons aforesaid.

For example, a solvent composition for softening celluloid and the likemay be composed of twenty per cent, of ethylene glycol mono ethyl etheracetate or other derivative of ethylene glycol, adapted for solvent purposes, mixed with eighty per cent, of carbon tetrachloride. Pen tubesof, say, one thirtysecond of an inch thickness may be enetrated by sucha solvent, by instantaneous y dipping them into and removing them fromsuch a bath, allowing them to rest thereafter, for, say, ten minutes topermit thorough penetration of the solvent, before dyeing them.

It may be observed that such treatment of, say, ten minutes duration, isas efficacious in the preparation of the material for dyeing asimmersion in a bath of twenty percent, acetone and eighty percent,carbon tetrachloride, for a period of forty-eight hours, and has thefurther advantage that, whereas, celluloid or the like treated withacetone to soften it, rehardens in a few minutes and, therefore, anyoperation of dyeing it must be hastened for accomplishment within such abrief period; on the contrary, the softening effect of our presentinvention is prolonged, by reason of the low volatility of the cellulosenitrate solvents, so that ample time is afforded for any desiredoperation of dyeing, without undue haste.

Therefore, it is possible to simultaneously treat a large .quantity ofarticles at a single operation, say, sufficient for a supply for dyeingduring eight hours thereafter whereas, the effect of any of the priormethods and means herein contemplated is so evanescent that only suchsmall quantities of articles may be treated with the solvent at one timeas can be quickly dyed thereafter, with consequent loss of time and useof apparatus in repetition of the solvent treating operations at shortintervals.

Moreover, it is possible to subject the celluloid or the like to theaction of solvents of the character aforesaid during the dyeingoperation and without the preliminary treatment aforesaid, by dissolvingthe dye stuff in the solvent solution and applying a mixture of dyestuff and solvent directly to the surface to be dyed. The effect of suchapplication is that the solvent penetrates the celluloid and the likeand the dye stufi follows it to a depth determined by the percentage ofsolvent present.

Furthermore, altho articles softened and dyed in accordance with ourinvention may be permitted to harden spontaneously by slow evaporationof the low volatile solvents employed; such hardening may be facilitatedby immersing the dyed articles in a diluent of the solvent capable oftaking up the latter from the dyed article. For instance, the dyedarticles may be submerged in a bath of carbon tetrachloride to extractthe solvent therefrom and be thus, as it were, case hardened.

Therefore, we do not desire to limit ourselves to the precise details ofthe method and means herein set forth, as it is obvious that variousmodifications may be made therein without departing from the essentialfeatures of our invention, as defined in the appended claim.

We claim: I

The method of forming an article of cellulosic material presenting amosaic pattern at its outer surface, which consists in selecting a pieceof said material of a uniform color desired for some elements of themosaic pattern; masking, with a coating insoluble in any solvent of saidmaterial, selected areas in spaced relation on said surface which are toremain of that color; subjecting the unmasked areas of said surface tothe action of a solvent of said material, having a high boiling pointand low volatility; and subjecting unmasked areas in spaced relation onsaid surface to the action of a dye to which said material is normallyresistant, but is rendered quickly permeable by the action of saidsolvent; wherein the solvent is mixed with carbon tetrachloride.

In testimony whereof, we have hereunto signed our names at Burlington,New Jersey, this 81st day of January, 1929.

SAMUEL A. NEIDICH.

WILLIAM MENDEL.

